Minnesota at Green Bay

Minnesota has put a little of the turmoil behind themselves with two straight wins. The last win was a huge upset as they beat the Giants on the road as 9.5 point underdogs. But, that was a VERY misleading win folks. They had a punt return TD, a kickoff return TD and an interception return TD. Given that they scored 24 total points, that leaves exactly...ummm... 0 touchdowns scored by the offense. If we look back at their other road performances this year, they have lost by an average score of 11.6 to 30.8! They scored 8 against Cincinatti, 10 at Atlanta, 3 at Chicago and 13 at Carolina. Their offense remains anemic and I expect them to struggle to score here in the unfriendly environment of Lambeau. Brad Johnson hasn't been horrible but he's averaging just over 5 yards per pass and hasn't shown he can stretch a defense at all. Sure, the Pack are no good right now either but they will be fired up at home here on Monday Night and and looking to return the favor for a 3-point loss to Minnesota back in week seven. In that game, Minnesota came back from a 17-0 deficit to win in OT, leaving a bitter taste in their mouths. The Pack can ease a lot of pains tonight with a big win. If they can keep the running game going with Gado, they'll win this one by a good margin. The Vikings have the 25th ranked offense and 28th ranked defense in the league. Green Bay, despite their record, has the 10th ranked defense and a respectable offense ranked 16th. Green Bay is a better team and better coached. My computer simulation has the Pack winning this one by about 8.5 points and that seems about right. Minnesota hasn't won in Green Bay in six seasons and this will be a tall order for them. Mike Tice knows how to play down to competition as well. He is 2-11 ATS as the coach of Minnesota on the road vs. losing teams. Green Bay should win this one by a touchdown or more. Three stars on the Pack minus the points.